Several of my friends in the social justice/black farmers movement will be in New York this weekend. Charla and I will be mindful of them as they travel and speak. These friends, Gary Grant, Spencer Wood, and Michael Stewart, and others, have become more than casual friends in this movement. Check here for the conference and its details. It should be extraordinarily interesting and provocative. Another page full of information is this one.
Of much meaning to me personally is that Gary Grant, BFAA president, will be presenting information that I have been gathering for several years. Gary thinks that this is a one of a kind set of data in terms of the impact of dealing with the USDA on the health and well-being of black farmers and family members. The topic is "Land Loss, Litigation, and the Health and Well-Being of African American Farmers." That he will be presenting the data and its interpretation is a first. Normally I present and he is there to encourage me. He thinks it is important that this information is presented. I think it is important. We both believe that farming while black under the scrutinizing eye of the USDA and FSA with land and livelihood loss in plain view is destructive to people, individually and collectively.
Over the next few weeks I will be summarizing some of that work here. I hope you will follow this page as some of these pieces are nuanced.
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